Thrifty Alternatives ..Building Foam Campers

[KCStudly]

Guano? Did someone say guano?

[GPW]

Guano, I hear that makes good garden fertilizer... Have to re-do my entire container garden , The recent freeze took all that , except my Pineapples (?) My 5 year old Avocado tree looks like a dead stick ... Not going to prune anything till we’re sure it’s “gone pecan” ...

[Mary C]

oh poop, sorry about your losses. I know after planting some types of pretty flowers and loosing them several times I gave up. I will put the tiny plants I have now out in the spring and if they live ok but I am just not a gardener. I still got my black thumb. Good luck to you!!!! I haven't seen the bat in a couple of days. Maybe he was a transient. I saw him a couple of days. Maybe it got too cold. I am back to working on the two pivot shelves cut out sand put edges on and mount..........something to work on yea!!!!

Mary C.

[GPW]

Mary , the wife still likes to plant flowers (or have me plant them ) I’m growing nothing but edibles (you’ve seen the price of Produce lately ) ... My Container garden is working out well in conjunction with my rain barrels ... The only way I seem to have any Luck ... our city water kills my plants ... Soon as it starts to warm up , we’re going to expand the garden to much larger ... The elevated containers are easier for me to attend to (at my age) Doing all the cooking , I’ve come to appreciate fresh herbs , just right outside the kitchen door ... THRIFTY !!!

[Mary C]

I have a rabbit problem one year (6 ago) I planted a huge garden one acre, I got one squash and 2 beans, I thought I would plant a small garden up near the house the next year , I got one cue and 2 squash and no beans. one of these years I will buy the screen that keeps the animals out but what I find is that by the time I spend all for a garden I can go to the local farmers produce market and buy what I use. If I want to do canning I go to the big farmers market and buy in bulk and I really save money that way. I do plant a few herbs, sometimes they live and sometimes they don't. Because I leave for camp outs I am not here to water so one year everything died. my tomatoes look terrible so I don't bother anymore. congratulations on your garden.

Mary C.

[bonnie]

Mary , the wife still likes to plant flowers (or have me plant them ) I’m growing nothing but edibles (you’ve seen the price of Produce lately ) ... My Container garden is working out well in conjunction with my rain barrels ... The only way I seem to have any Luck ... our city water kills my plants ... Soon as it starts to warm up , we’re going to expand the garden to much larger ... The elevated containers are easier for me to attend to (at my age) Doing all the cooking , I’ve come to appreciate fresh herbs , just right outside the kitchen door ... THRIFTY !!!

GPW, Where's the of your garden setup? I would love to see it.

[GPW]

Bonnie , the recent Freeze took most everything ... Pretty Sad looking right now ... That’s why the need for the re-do and expansion ...

[ghcoe]

I am looking forward to getting my garden started as well. I made a cold frame last year out of foam to see how it would work. So far I have not lost any plants to frost. Before Christmas it got down to 0 at night and never got above 20 for two weeks. I had two 60 watt bulbs running in it and all came out great. Going to try some self watering gutter gardening this year. Getting some chickens soon and I am starting some permaculture with the yard this spring. Grow your own food! It is like printing your own money, plus the food is better for you and taste better than that store bought garbage.

You can see some of last years garden in this picture. Tomatoes in the fore ground and background. The tomatoes in the background are 5 feet tall!

[GPW]

Think about all the Produce you buy at the store .... it’s from Far away ... has to be shipped many miles ... that’s not Green eh ...

Back to Foamies ... I have a piece of Burlap left over from the FS build and was playing with it ... That’s one Tough fabric !!! and its very Inexpensive too (Thriftier if you use old burlap sacks ) ... Just thinking how it would be on the outside ? Might be a good material for a Foamie fishing shack or “hunting camp” type box, or just a rustic looking camper ... sure would be easy to camo paint it ... And I believe the Jute it’s made from is a stronger , more durable fiber than cotton canvas...

[Wolffarmer]

My favorite re-purpose of a burlap potato sack

Potato Sack

Randy

[GPW]

Some people can make anything look good ... the rest of us just look stupid standing there in a sack ... It’s all in the distraction eh ... Notice with Marilyn , we don’t even notice the sack ... That said , it would be logical to “assume" that a Foamie’ with a pretty paint job would make the sack covering ... unnoticeable

Even the most expensive RV motor coach with a plain paint job would still look like a Bus ... Just sayin’ ... It’s ALL Eye Candy , no matter the contents ... we have a natural predisposition to appreciate Beauty ... even tested on babies , who naturally were attracted to pretty ...We really can’t help we are so “superficial” ... It’s a Natural thing ... Something to be aware of when you’re shopping for “content” (what’s really inside the sack) ...

Still thinking Burlap would be a Great covering material ... and Very THRIFTY !!! With a pretty paint job , who will ever know , or care ...

[Wolffarmer]

Maybe it is just the Idaho farm boy in me but I noticed the sack.

I worked a lot with them in my teen years. Bucking 100 lbs sacks onto the bed of a truck, well we did not generally fill them up as on the farm you do not fill them clear up as the top is not sown shut. But they are still 75+ lbs.

[GPW]

So, what’s your opinion of the material they’re made from ???

[Wolffarmer]

Well, there is different types of burlap cloth. The potato sacks are made of a loser weave as the spuds are still to large to get out. There was also bean sacks with a much tighter weave. The thread/yarn was never meant to last a long time and will rot away in a few months if left in a moist area but it is rather strong. It was cheap crap that did its job back in the day and was plenty strong to hold in 100 lbs of spuds are they where tossed about, lifted by one end so the whole 100 lbs pressing against the other end. Yeah. it was strong and if protected from rotting ( just like wood ) Is plenty strong. It will probably soak up a huge amount of binding material and be rather thick in the end. Specially is one tries to fill in the weave to get a smooth surface. But no real reason it has to be finished to a smooth surface.

Randy

edit There was also grain sacks but I remember a few bean sacks in our supply of potato sacks. Remember those things well as they where larger than a potato sack and they often got filled right up just like a potato sack. You would bust a gut when you grab hold one of those and try to toss it on the truck. Its a wonder my back is still good and no hernias. Shoulders are shot.

[depatty]

Then there is the machinery grade burlap which has a oily odor to it. Used to be used in packing or wrapping metal machine parts, not sure they make or use it any more. Bought a roll of 32 or 33 inch wide at a yard sale a while ago. Not sure how it will take paint due to the oil which I think was put in the burlap as a rust inhibitor. Also seems to keep the burlap in good shape as from what the person I got this roll told me indicates that it is 40 + years old and feels/looks brand new. Came out of an old hardware store that has been closed since the 60's. Have considered trying it as a interior wall covering over the foam. May be able to wash it and remove enough of the oil to get paint ti stick. Think I gave $10 or so for the roll which is about a foot in diameter. Thrifty

Waiting for warmer weather to do any outside work on my new project.

Dave